Just Start
93.
That’s what the thermostat in the hallway read yesterday afternoon.
93 f-ing degrees.
Look, I know that some people looooove hot weather. And I’m glad for them. Truly.
But I’m not one of them.
I enjoy the heat of summer for approximately two weeks and then I start looking for signs of fall and an excuse to wear a sweatshirt and drink another steaming mug of coffee.
Sweatshirts and hot coffee are not on the agenda right now.
At 93 degrees, almost nothing was on the agenda yesterday afternoon.
(For you southerners scratching your head, let me remind you that while 93 might not be a heatwave for you, we have no a/c…none…it’s nothing but window fans up in here.)
I’d promised myself a good run in the woods after I finished working on a project with a mid-day deadline.
I’m still getting my bearings back after my return from Texas last week and a run in the trees is grounding for me.
Unless it’s 93 degrees.
Then it’s just a recipe for heatstroke, which, you know, isn’t my best look.
But I needed to get back into my body.
I’d spent all morning at my desk and in my head and if I wanted to be able to write anything worth reading (and I did), I was going to need to re-attach my floating brain to the body it’s in.
So I did what any reasonable adult would do.
I stripped down to tank top and shorts, set up a fan to blow directly at me, and did some sort of bizarre dance-party-yoga hybrid for 20 minutes to a random playlist I found on Spotify called “Kid's Dance Party.”
It wasn’t pretty.
It wasn’t a “workout” or part of some kind of massive fitness program.
BUT…
It was movement.
It was fun.
It felt really good.
It reset me.
It reconnected my mind with my body.
Then I took a shower, grabbed a popsicle, and got back to work.
And that was that.
Stop overcomplicating your self-care.
Stop making it a THING.
There is a place for fitness goals.
And a meditation practice.
And a healthy eating plan and a strict bedtime and a morning routine that rarely gets missed.
But if none of those things are happening for you right now, stop fussing.
Stop building them up into daunting mountains to climb.
It can be simple:
Make sure you get some water into that body of yours.
Eat some veggies everyday so you have some fuel for all those fires you are creating and putting out all day.
When you’re tired at night, go to bed instead of saying ‘just one more” to that Netflix show you’re binging.
If you feel emotional or overwhelmed, stop what you’re doing and find a way to reset, whether it’s simply taking a few deep breaths or a walk or a shower (don’t give me that song and dance— you have time for this…and if you feel like you don’t, then it’s more important than ever that you do it.).
And move your body in some way that creates joy and connection to it.
That’s it.
Your well-being is not made up of all-or-nothing choices.
Start where you are.
Start with what you have.
Just start.
Now.
Stay curious out there, my friend.